During the American Revolutionary War, Lake Champlain was the scene of much activity with the British moving soldiers and supplies southward from Canada to the fight in the Colonies. The Colonists thought it would be a good idea to stop them there and, as a result, there were some sea battles on Champlain as well as land battles at the British fort at Ticonderoga near the lake shore.

On the water, the rebels and the British used a variety of watercraft. The colonists employed the gunboat whose sole function was to be a platform for a cannon or two. These gunboats were simple affairs, just a bit more than a large raft and often built on the spot. A large, well armed ship could easily defeat one but when the gunboats were used in numbers and spread out, they could inflict serious damage on a larger and more powerful enemy ship.

Archaeologists and re-enactors from the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum will launch this weekend a full-sized replica 1776 gunboat at the Falls Basin in Vergennes. The ceremony begins at 11:00 Saturday the 25th and the public will be invited aboard until mid afternoon. At that time the gunboat will proceed along Otter Creek to the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum in Burlington. There will be viewing opportunities along Otter Creek.

The gunboat, named the Philadelphia II, will take part in Sunday's Rabble in Arms event, a reenactment of American Revolutionary War times. The museum's gunboat will take part in naval maneuvers and gunnery exercises.

(c) 2007 Jeff Connor except the photo which is courtesy of the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum